


Conquering Instincts

by hummerhouse



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012)
Genre: Interspecies Relationship(s), M/M, Yaoi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-02-21
Packaged: 2018-05-22 08:23:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6072049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hummerhouse/pseuds/hummerhouse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Disclaimer: The TMNT are not mine. No money being made.<br/>Word Count: 2,260 One shot 2k12<br/>Rated: R (just in case) for innuendo<br/>Pairing: Leatherhead/Donatello<br/>Summary: Despite his first impression, Donatello learns to appreciate the large alligator known as Leatherhead.</p><p>~~A gift for Momorawrr</p>
            </blockquote>





	Conquering Instincts

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LineCrosser](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LineCrosser/gifts).



            He was a turtle.

            At a very early point in his life he had mutated to something more.  He had become sentient; had grown, had gained abilities, become intelligent.  Extremely intelligent.

            His instincts were still that of a turtle though.  As such, the sight of a giant, angry, mutated alligator evoked a deeply ingrained urge to flee.

            His ninja training was in direct contrast to that impulse.  It was incumbent upon him to fight, to help protect his brothers.

            As it turned out, the only ‘help’ he had been was by keeping one of the crocodile’s hands busy.  For some inexplicable reason, it had grabbed him by the face and flung him around like a ragdoll.  Not once, but twice.

            His brothers found it funny and taunted and teased him about it, but to Donatello it was not amusing.  Having his face pulled in fourteen different directions hurt and he was always painfully aware of Leatherhead’s claws so close to his eyes.

            Then he had discovered that the alligator was not a vicious monster, but a poor tortured creature who, as his father had said, had a genuine heart.

            Along with his brothers, they had fought beside the alligator dubbed ‘Leatherhead’ against the Kraang.  They were successful in keeping their enemies away from the Kraang power cell, acquiring a sweet new ride in the process.  Their escape was entirely due to Leatherhead’s selfless act in attacking the Kraang and buying Don the time he needed to modify the subway car. 

            The force of the power cell placed the turtle clan miles from their starting point.  It also left them with no clue as to Leatherhead’s whereabouts or what had befallen him.

            Their victory was short lived.  After managing to keep the location of the power cell a secret from the Kraang, a running battle between the turtles, Xever, and the Purple Dragons had caused the lead casing on the power cell to be broken.  Thereafter it was easy for the Kraang to follow its energy signature.  And to get the power cell away from the turtles.

            Try as they might, they could not retrieve the power cell and were forced to locate Leatherhead, hoping for information that would help them find it.

            Waking Leatherhead from a deep sleep was necessary but had led to Don having his face grabbed, his body shaken and then thrown against a wall.  Admitting that they’d lost the power cell was something Leonardo had done _after_ Don had moved to a distance he considered safe.  It wasn’t.

            This time Leatherhead had calmed himself, releasing Don’s face and apologizing for his actions.  Of course, he had done so while pulling Don’s cheeks as if they were made of elastic, but a placid Leatherhead performing that action hadn’t bothered the turtle nearly as much.

            Leatherhead had not known where to find the Kraang, but he had supplied Donatello with the clue that provided them with the answer to that question.  With April’s help, the turtles and Leatherhead had invaded the TCRI building.

            Waiting inside the large cardboard box, crammed against Leatherhead, Donatello was forced to admit to himself that the giant gator's presence was reassuring.  His tough, leathery hide felt good rubbing against Don’s own.  Unlike the softness of April’s skin, Don could actually perceive the rough texture of Leatherhead’s through his plastron.  It was far from unpleasant.

            There was no time to try to understand where those foreign thoughts had come from.  The turtles escaped the box before Leatherhead launched himself at the Kraang and then they became separated.

            The brothers had battled the Kraang to the upper reaches of their hideout, only to succumb to the toxic atmosphere encompassing that floor.  They had been taken captive, but quick thinking and ingenuity had helped them escape, only to face a monster made of rock after it emerged through the dimensional portal.

            Don’s personal fascination with the monster swiftly ended when it attacked the brothers.  Try as they might, they could not defeat it, though Leonardo had come up with a plan to blow up the monster and the portal at the same time.

            Leatherhead’s abrupt entrance solved their dilemma on how to get the monster onto the portal platform.  Donatello’s shouted instruction had been immediately followed by the alligator who had effortlessly tossed Traag onto the portal and then Don had triggered the bomb.

           However, when the dust cleared, neither the monster nor the portal was damaged.

            As Traag pulled himself together, the portal came to life again.  Don warned that something else might come through, asking what they should do now.  Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, Leatherhead had pounced on Traag.  In that fleeting instant, Don marveled at how Leatherhead always seemed to respond to him.

            The portal began to roar and Mikey had called out to Leatherhead that something else was coming through.  Rather than escape the platform, Leatherhead announced, “Not if I can help it.”  Then he’d grabbed Traag, bid the Turtles farewell, and disappeared into the portal.

            Leatherhead’s sacrifice seemed to burn out the portal for the moment.  The brothers' desire to destroy the portal permanently was thwarted by the entry of a multitude of armed Kraang droids and the turtles were forced to retreat.

            Michelangelo was devastated by Leatherhead’s loss.  Although Donatello had not enjoyed having that massive leathery hand wrapped around his face, he had to admit that he was sad as well.  He had felt as though some type of connection had sprung up between the alligator and himself.  In the last moments of the battle, Leatherhead had proven to be brave, loyal, and kind hearted, attributes which Donatello held dear.

            Instincts came into play once more at a later date, this time those of his youngest brother Michelangelo’s.  Having accidently activated a Kraang portal, the turtles had received a message from Leatherhead, warning them that their enemies were on the move again.

            While the three older brothers discussed their best course of action, Mikey had bounded out of his seat to dive without hesitation into the portal.  There was nothing that he, Leonardo, and Raphael could do but to follow.

            Their trip through the portal had taken them into Dimension X.  Donatello wasn’t there but a few seconds before he was ready to go home.

            That desire was doubled upon learning that Michelangelo was some sort of genius in the Kraang dimension.  His abilities were impressive and bizarre all at the same time, a combination that was almost too much for Don’s brain to process.

            Mikey’s talents proved to be advantageous though as the youngest brother took them to the Kraang base and past their defenses.  A search of the interior of the facility led them finally to Leatherhead.

            Donatello set to work releasing Leatherhead from his cell and his shackles.  The change in the alligator was noted by Mikey, but it was Don who understood the reason as to why he appeared older.  Somehow rather than lessening Don’s new fascination with Leatherhead, the aging just enhanced it.

            Upon seeing the incredible numbers of the Kraang droids, Don had instinctively backed towards Leatherhead’s protective bulk, surprising himself.  A moment later he’d argued with the alligator over what their next step should be, but now he no longer worried that Leatherhead might grab his face.  They had become comfortable with each other.

            It was Michelangelo who had decided their best strategy, leading the fight into the portal room.  Donatello’s job was to shut down all but one portal that they would use to get home, but he could not manipulate the Kraang controls properly.  Mikey had come to the rescue again, pushing Don aside and playing the Kraang console like a virtuoso pianist.

            When Leatherhead tried to be a hero again, urging the turtles to escape while he held back the Kraang forces, Mikey pushed him through the portal.  They had come to Dimension X to rescue Leatherhead and that was exactly what they did.

            The five of them were ecstatic to be home again even though they did not know how long their sabotage of the Kraang would keep them from invading.

            Mikey’s dedication in locating and saving Leatherhead had brought the alligator back to Earth.  Afterwards, it was Donatello who kept the alligator coming back to the lair over and over again.  Suddenly, it was as though they could not get enough of each other’s company.

           Leatherhead had a pleasantly deep voice, one that never failed to soothe Donatello’s jangled nerves. Often the alligator sat in the lab with Don, talking to him or reading aloud.  The sound eased Don’s tension, erasing the stress of his failed experiments like no one else in his family, including Master Splinter, could manage to do.

           It wasn’t long before the pair discovered they desired a deeper connection. Being near one another turned into tentative touching, then hands that lingered, then bolder embraces.  All of which occurred without the knowledge of the rest of Don’s family.

           Their interludes together took place inside Donatello’s lab, the doors closed at first, and then locked as the pair began to explore new ways to pleasure one another. Leatherhead’s muted rumblings of bliss combined with Donatello’s satisfied churrs, neither worrying in those moments that their secret would be found out.

           Then one late night they had forgotten to lock the door. The pair fell into each other’s arms with little care; after all, Leatherhead had come to the lair late, after the rest of Don’s family was supposedly asleep.

           They had been apart for just over a day and wasted no time on preliminaries. Donatello was just as anxious to feel his lover’s heartbeat against his plastron as Leatherhead was to hug the young turtle to his body.

           The stroke of Leatherhead’s tongue on Don’s sensitive neck had the genius moaning wantonly in seconds. His bō staff clattered to the ground as Leatherhead tossed it aside, pressing Donatello against the nearest wall, unwilling to waste time taking him to the desk.

           A few moments later Michelangelo strolled into the room. The timing couldn’t have been worse.

           “Dude! Leatherhead!  Stop attacking Donnie!” Mikey shouted, completely oblivious as to what was actually happening.

           Don’s startled gasp was loud in the lab, as was Leatherhead’s grunt of surprise. Mikey immediately misinterpreted the sounds, darting forward and leaping onto Leatherhead’s back in an attempt to save his brother.

           Leatherhead released Don and stumbled back as Mikey slapped both hands over the alligator’s eyes. Caught _in flagrante delicto,_ a flushed and embarrassed Donatello quickly exclaimed, “Stop, stop! He wasn’t hurting me!”

           Mikey’s gaze promptly turned to Don and though the genius tried to cover the outward signs of his excitement with his hands, it was still quite prominent.

           Suddenly frozen in shock, Mikey slid off of Leatherhead’s back, mouth dropping open and eyes bugging out of his head. With Mikey’s weight off his back, Leatherhead moved in front of Don, facing his inamorato so that they could both regain their modesty.

            “D . . . Donnie!” Mikey finally managed, for once at a loss for words.

           “Please don’t tell, Mikey,” Don begged. His virtue intact again, Don stepped around Leatherhead and approached his brother.  “Leatherhead and I care for each other.  When we’re together we can forget the bad things that have happened to us and be really happy.  Please tell me you understand and can keep quiet about this.  I don’t think anyone else could recognize that LH and I need each other, but I’ll bet you can.”

           “You are my good friend, Michelangelo,” Leatherhead told him. “You have always known what I long for; you can sense my needs.  Tell me you can see the truth in how much I cherish your brother.”

           For several long moments Mikey just stared at them, until Don began to wonder if they had fried all of his brother’s brain cells. A look of comprehension finally crawled across Mikey’s face and he broke into a broad grin.

           “Leatherhead and Donnie, sitting in a tree . . . .” Mikey began chanting, dancing around the lab. “K – I – S – S – I – N . . . .”

           “Mikey!” Don yelled.

           His brother stopped dancing and turned bright blue eyes on the enamored pair. “Chill bro’,” Mikey said, a deliriously elated look on his face.  “I’m happy for you, dude.  I solemnly promise not to say a word to anyone.”

           As he spoke, Mikey trotted over to the lab’s entrance. Turning on the threshold, he added, “You should really lock the door before you guys start to fool around.  Someone not so understanding might barge in here.”

           Maintaining his mischievous smile, Mikey exited the lab, closing the door behind him.

           A couple of long strides put Don at the door, which he swiftly locked, making a mental note to himself to always double check it before losing himself to Leatherhead’s passion. A few seconds later, the pair had picked up where they’d left off.

           Donatello had no idea how much longer he and Leatherhead could maintain their subterfuge. Mikey was not known for his ability to keep a secret, though Don was sure his little brother would try his best.

           It didn’t matter. Don was much too overjoyed with the fulfillment his relationship with Leatherhead afforded him.  When the big alligator’s hands touched his face now, it was with a gentleness that brought wings to Don’s heart.

           Sometimes getting the best things out of life meant conquering your instincts. Donatello was very happy to have done just that.

End


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